EgyptAir MS804 as it happened: Wreckage of Cairo-bound Airbus carrying 66 people discovered off Greek Island

Greek and Egyptian authorities have said they believe they have found the debris of EgyptAir flight MS804 which disappeared while flying over the Mediterranean. The Airbus A320 was travelling from Paris to Cairo when it disappeared at around 2.45am Cairo time (1.45am BST).

What we know

Richard Osman has been identified in the local press as the Briton aboard the missing flight

An Egyptian search plane has spotted two orange items believed to be from the flight MS804

Egyptian Civil Avation Minister Sherif Fathi has said a terror attack was likely cause of the crash

There were 56 passengers on board and 10 crew members

30 Egyptians, 15 French nationals and 1 UK national among the passengers on the plane

EgyptAir has confirmed that wreckage of the flight was recovered in an online statement:

"[The] Egyptian Ministry of Civil Aviation has just received an official letter from the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs declaring the finding of wreckage of the missing aircraft No. MS 804 near Karpathos Island.

"EgyptAir sincerely conveys its deepest sorrow to the families and friends of the passengers onboard Flight MS804. Family members of passengers and crew have been already informed and we extend our deepest sympathies to those affected. Meanwhile, the Egyptian Investigation Team in co-operation with the Greek counterpart are still searching for other remains of the missing plane."

US Secretary of State John Kerry has declined to comment on the fate of EgyptAir flight MS804,

"Relevant authorities are doing everything they can to try and find out what the facts are of what happened today. I have no more knowledge than others at this point with respect to those facts," Reuters news agency quoted Kerry as saying.

EgyptAir - which the the Egyptian government has said would lead on all official information relayed about the missing flight - has said statements by Greek officials to several news outlets about the discovery of two pieces of debris is incorrect.

EGYPTAIR has contacted the concerned authorities which did not confirm this information. /2

The Secretary of State for Defence has said Britain has offered a C-130 Hercules aircraft and to support Egyptian authorities in the search operation. He said: "Our thoughts remain with the families of those on board EgyptAir flight MS804 as then await further information."

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon's statement on the missing EgyptAir jet and support provided by the UK. pic.twitter.com/u5qMvPReDA

Breaking: US officials are saying that the early indications are that a bomb took down the stricken flight, according to CNN

15:32 Debris reportedly from the missing EgyptAir flight MS804 has been found near to where it disappeared off radarsTarek Wahba

Tarek Wahba, an Egyptian ship captain whose vessel, the Maersk Ahram, participated in search and rescue operations after the disappearance the plane shared images on Facebook purportedly showing debris from the flight. The unverifiable images show an orange object floating in the water.

There is also unverified video footage appearing to show floating in the sea:

Airbus said the aircraft was delivered to EgyptAir in 2003 and had logged 48,000 flight hours before it "was lost" over the Mediterranean, AP has reported. The European plane-maker said in a statement Thursday that it had engines made by Swiss-based engine consortium IAE, and had the serial number 2088.

More from AP on the debris of EgyptAir flight: Two orange items believed to be from the missing EgyptAir flight were recovered 230 miles (370 kilometers) south-southeast of the island of Crete but still within the Egyptian air traffic control area.

One of the items was oblong, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Speaking to the BBC, a French air traffic controller has described the descent of flight EgyptAir flight MS804 was "rapid" and "very sudden". He added that the crew were "not able to respond to the rules" because of how quickly the incident took place.

France's President Francois Hollande has said the EgyptAir flight has crashed, in contradiction with statements from Egyptian officials who have said they will describe the plane as missing until further information becomes available.

Following a meeting of Egypt's National Security Council, chaired by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the country's authorities have said they will continue to collaborate with their French and Greek counterparts as they search for the missing flight.

The Egyptian government will provide to assistance to the families of those missing in the presumed crash, Sisi's office has said in a statement. The most up to date information will be made available through EgyptAir's crisis centre

More pictures of the families of the missing EgyptAir flight passengers have emerged as they arrive at Cairo airport to get updates on the developing situation.

A relative of a passenger who was flying aboard an EgyptAir plane that vanished from radar en route from Paris to Cairo overnight cries as family members are transported by bus to a gathering point at Cairo airportAFP

At a press conference in Cairo, the Egyptian government said it was too early to rule out terrorism or a technical fault as the cause of the plane's disappearance.

Its aviation minister added he would refer to the plane as "missing" until debris is found, which contrasts with president Hollande's assertion it has crashed. The minister has also advised relatives and families to watch TV for updates.

The latest reports are that the plane swerved left and right before dramatically losing altitude and disappearing off radar.

Greek air traffic controllers attempted to contact the cockpit for up to 10-12 minutes but were met with radio silence. This happened while the plane was just 20 minutes from its destination, Cairo.

The last time controllers spoke to the flight deck the aircraft did not seem to be in any danger.

Greek defense minister, Panos Kammenos

The plane was just 10-15 miles into Egypt's air space when "it turned 90 degrees left and then a 360- degree turn toward the right, dropping from 38,000 to 15,000 feet and then it was lost at about 10,000 feet."